LOS ANGELES — Before joining the Los Angeles Clippers in free agency, Kawhi Leonard was on a path toward become a legend under Gregg Popovich and the San Antonio Spurs. Things obviously fell apart, but their relationship hasn't soured.
The Clippers and Spurs played in Los Angeles on Saturday night, and with Leonard back in the lineup, it meant he got to face his former coach and team. LA defeated San Antonio, 119-97, with Leonard scoring 11 points and dishing out four assists in 22 minutes.
After the game, Kawhi Leonard and Gregg Popovich shared a moment at center court:
Kawhi Leonard on this exchange with Gregg Popovich:
"You know I don’t tell what goes on on the court. Maybe if you ask him and he tells you but I’ll keep it between us."pic.twitter.com/KnKOdgLhdP
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) November 20, 2022
Leonard wouldn't share what he and Popovich said to each other, but did praise his former coach.
“He meant a lot,” Clippers star Kawhi Leonard said of Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. “He’s the reason why I'm the player I am today. Built that foundation on showing me winning basketball and, yeah, he’s a great coach. Still one of the best coaches I had. We've been in too many battles to have a scar on our relationship.”
Kawhi Leonard on Gregg Popovich: "He's a great coach. One of the best coaches I had. We've been in too many battles to have a scar in our relationship."
"Can you tell us what you said on the court?"
"Nah, you know I don't tell what goes on on the court. Maybe if you ask him." pic.twitter.com/GlSUPAepdJ
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) November 20, 2022
Before the game, Popovich was asked about Leonard's constant improvement entering Year 12 in the NBA.
“Are you kidding?” Popovich quipped. “He's probably gonna be a Hall of Fame player. He wasn't a Hall of Fame player when he first got drafted, so I would say he's improved quite a bit. He's done a great job. He's worked his ass off.”
Back in 2019, Gregg Popovich told ClutchPoints that nobody could see Leonard becoming as good as he has.
“When we we made that trade for him and drafted him, we didn’t know he was gonna be Kawhi Leonard just like we didn’t know Manu [Ginobili] was gonna be Manu when we drafted him at whatever, 57 or something like that,” Popovich added. “People who tell you that are full of crap.
“You never know how a player is gonna develop and whether he’s drafted fourth or 19th, you just don’t know.”
Gregg Popovich on Kawhi Leonard – “There wasn’t 1 moment where it was like ‘wow!’ When we traded for/drafted him, we didn’t know he was gonna be Kawhi Leonard just like we didn’t know Manu was gonna be Manu. People who tell you that are full of crap.”#Clippers #Spurs pic.twitter.com/osQr7ZhWGx
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) November 1, 2019
It's good to see there isn't a fractured relationship between Kawhi Leonard and Gregg Popovich despite the ugly end to his tenure with the San Antonio Spurs.
Leonard played 494 games with the Spurs between the regular season and postseason, leading them to the 2014 NBA championship in a postseason in which he also took home the NBA Finals MVP Award.
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